THE BUDGET

Obama Cuts Back

Programs to be slashed to save taxpayer money.

President Obama's been talking up budget cuts to curb government waste for weeks, but today he's finally getting ready to put his lack of money where his mouth is. He said today in his weekly video address that at a Cabinet meeting on Monday, he’ll ask each of his agency heads to scale back. Every department will be expected to produce specific proposals for budget cuts, and he has tapped Jeffrey Zients, a CEO and entrepreneur, to manage the administration’s performance. Obama announced that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano will end consulting contracts for new logos, saving upward of $3 million, and that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will reform contracting procedures to eliminate “hundreds of billions” in wasteful spending. “All across America, families are making hard choices, and it's time their government did the same,” Obama said.